Match report 22/1/22

Esher 34 Leicester Lions 31

Saturday 22nd January 2022

League Points 5-2

Esher 34: Tries: Theo Skoumbourdis (35, 46), James Chaumeton (40), Adam Bullett (58); Conversions: Sam Morley (35, 40, 46, 58); Penalties: Sam Morley (4, 16);

Leicester Lions 31: Tries: James Stubbs (9, 60), Will Ward (21), Alex WilHuckleberryson (55); Conversions: Ben Young (9, 21, 55, 60); Penalties: Ben Young (38);

Lions stretched their opponents Esher, but Esher hold out against a dynamic Lions performance.

Lions had defeated Esher 27-21 in the home fixture, at Westleigh Park, Blaby, in September 2021, so an exciting close game was expected.

Sam Morley opened the scoring for Esher with a penalty.

Lions quickly came back with a nippy try by their scrum half James Stubbs, converted by Ben Young. Sam Morley added a second penalty for Esher, before Lions struck again with second row Will Ward thrusting through for their second try, with Ben Young adding the extras. After 21 minutes Lions had established a deserved 14-6 lead.

In the closing minutes of the first half Esher started to show their class when Theo Skoumbourdis powered his way through for their first try of the afternoon, with Sam Morley adding the conversion. Lions replied with a Ben Young penalty, but smart play by Esher just before the break gave their centre James Chaumeton space to run in a try, with Sam Morley adding the extras.

Half Time: Esher 20 Leicester Lions 17

The second half quickly started with Theo Skoumbourdis going over for his second try of the afternoon for Esher, with Sam Morley again adding the conversion.

Lions closed the gap with a try by Alex WilHuckleberryson following a dashing run through the centre, with Ben Young putting the conversion between the posts.

With Esher in the lead and the score at 27-24, it was still anyone’s game.

It did not take Esher long to widen the points gap when their captain and second row Adam Bullet drove through for a try and Sam Morley added the conversion.
Again Lions were quick to retaliate with James Stubbs darting through for his second try of the afternoon, with Ben Young dependably adding the conversion, taking the score to 34-31, with the last quarter of the game to go.

Both sides had opportunities, but the defences held out. In the last five minutes of the game Lions put the Esher’s line under pressure, but they were not able to produce the score that would have taken them into the lead.

The well contested game ended 34-31, with a nail-biting finish.

Final Score: Esher 34 Leicester Lions 31

A well contested match, with Lions showing application and determination against demanding opposition. Esher won a balanced game, which could have gone either way, with Esher holding out against Lions in the last minutes of the game.

An exciting try scoring afternoon – eight tries in total – four to Esher, four to Lions. All eight tries from the game were converted. A pleasing team performance by Lions, showing their class against testing opposition.

Following the game Lions were in sixth position in National League 2 South and Esher were in second position in the league, on the same number of points as league leaders, Clifton, but Esher had two games in hand.

Head Coach, Gareth Collins, was getting married over the weekend, so Assistant Head Coach, Chris McAuley, was in charge. Chris commented: ”The players will feel its 3 points dropped rather than 2 points gained after a hard fought game where both teams looked to attack and play positive rugby from the outset. Lions attacked from the first minute to the last, competing vigorously against one of the stand out teams in the league.
There is a lot to take away from the game, with opposition teams and match day officials describing Lions as a team who are fiercely competitive this season.
We look to next week with a chance to bounce back against a competitive Guernsey side who help make up the tight chasing pack in the top half of the table.”

Lions’ Chairman, Ken Whitehead, said: “We have had two testing fixtures over the last three games, away to league leaders, Clifton and second placed Esher. In both challenging games I feel the lads have given an excellent account of themselves”.

Next week, on Saturday 29th January 2022, Lions are at home to Guernsey, from The Channel Islands, at Westleigh Park, Lutterworth Road, Blaby, Leicester LE8 4DY, kick off 3.00 pm (t.b.c.).

Teams – Order 15-9, 1-8, 16-20
Esher: Jack Lavin, Dan Rowland, Fergus Donnelly, James Chaumeton, Tom James, Sam Morley, Sam Bullock, Matt Lowes, Andrew Hamilton, Theo Skoumbourdis, Hugh Sloane, Adam Bullett, Cameron Wilkins, Charlie Gossington, Lorcan Dow
Replacements: Will Routledge, David Coutts, Alex Stanley, Finlay McBrearty, Gus Locke
Leicester Lions: Alex WilHuckleberryson, Jake Sterland, Dan Martin, Joe Brock, Devon Constant, Ben Young, James Stubbs, Will Spendlove, Oli Taylor, Isaac Thompson, Toby Hutchinson, Will Ward, Simon Johnson, Jonny Murdoch, Ethan Godefroy
Replacements: Will Roberts, Shaun Murray, Nick Cairns, Ed Sumpter, Zach Bean